After hour/night depositories provided at bank and other financial institutions are typically constructed such that a chute extends from a depository device disposed in an opening through the outside wall of the building of the bank, to a safe or a money depositing receptacle, The depository device includes a door opening and closing device (referred hereinafter as a hopper assembly) arranged outward of the entrance of the chute, whereby a bag or an envelope including money deposited into the depository device slides down through the chute by gravity when the device is operated. Such depository devices have been used for decades, and are made of steel material to enhance security. Typically the door of the device includes a hopper on the inside of the door which receives the deposit envelop or money bag that is placed through the opening of the depository when the door is pulled opened. Associated with the hopper is a plunger or scoop which is pivotably affixed to the hopper, and which sweeps the envelope or money bag from the hopper when the door is closed, to ensure that the envelope or money bag passed down through the chute and into the safe. Examples of after hour/night bank depository devices are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,617,584, 3,465,955, 3,784,090, 4,063,520, 4,176,610, 4,483,255, 4,489,662, 4,573,416, and 5,284,101, the disclosures of which are incorporated by reference in their entireties.
The outer door of the depository pivots around a horizontal axis in a lower portion of the hopper assembly to permit the door to pivot out away from the depository opening. In many after hour/night depository devices, the person using the depository can open the door to a first stop position that allows only a thin opening into the hopper for placing envelopes. The door is opened from its initial closed position by pulling on a handle attached to the top of the door, down and away from the depository opening, to pivot the door open. To deposit a thicker envelop or a bag of money or instruments, a lock is unlocked, typically with a night depository key, that allows the door to pivot open to a second bag stop in one movement that allows the placement of the larger envelop or bag inside the hopper. The door is closed by lifting on the door handle, to pivot the door upward and back to the closed position. This action also causes the plunger to sweep the hopper of its contents into the chute.
The construction of the hopper assembly device includes the outer door and its pivot hinge, a handle for grasping and opening (and closing) the door, the hopper affixed to the inside surface of the door, and the plunger. The hopper assembly device can also include an integral ballast portion affixed the inside of the door, which is provided to counter-balance the weight of the hopper and plunger as the door pivots from its completely closed position toward the opening stop positions, and from the open positions to the closed position. Despite such feature, conventional night depository devices require a considerable amount of pull force upon the handle to initiate an opening of the hopper assembly from its completely closed position toward the opening stop positions, and to initiate a closing of the hopper assembly from its open or stop position(s) to the completely closed position. Generally, as much as 20 pounds force (lbf) or more upon the door handle is needed to initiate an opening or a closing of the hopper assembly.
In many cases, the weight of the hopper assembly itself is significant, and when the hopper assembly is open and is moving toward the full-open stop or position, the door can free-fall and impact the open stop with significant force, or can require the user to exert an opposite upward force to resist and prevent such free-fall.
Early versions of the Americans with Disabilities ADA Standards for Accessible Design had no specific requirements governing the maximum force necessary to operate an after hour or night depository. The recently introduced ADA Standards for Accessible Design (2010) has added a provision under Section 228 Depositories, Vending Machines, Change Machines, Mail Boxes, and Fuel Dispensers that depositories (including but not limited to night receptacles in banks) shall comply with Section 309 of the Standards. Section 309 Operable Parts includes Subsection 309.4 Operation that states “The force required to activate operable parts shall be 5 pounds (22.2 N) maximum.”
Consequently, there remains a need to improve the design and operation of night depository devices to require less force to initiate an opening of the hopper assembly from its completely closed position toward the opening stop positions, to initiate a closing of the hopper assembly from its open or stop position(s) to the completely closed position, and to improve the operation of the door by the user by controlling the amount of force necessary during opening and closing the hopper assembly.